Students throughout the Santa Clarita Valley are invited to submit their entries for the “Stay Healthy” creative essay writing and poster contest to be held in conjunction with Samuel Dixon Family Health Centers Inc.’s 11th Annual Rubber Ducky Festival.

This year’s student prompt is:  “Ducks and people have a lot of similarities. They both need to eat right, exercise and get regular check-ups to stay in peak performance. Our racing ducks travel all over the world to raise money for good causes like our local Samuel Dixon Family Health Centers. If you were one of the Rubber Ducky Regatta racing ducks, what is one thing you would do to stay healthy and prepare for the race?”

One student winner from each participating school will be selected, and winning entries will be displayed at the festival on Saturday, Oct. 5 at Bridgeport Park on Newhall Ranch Road in Valencia from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Essays must be 250 words or less; posters may be up to 11″ x 17″ in size. Each entry must include the student’s name, school of attendance, grade level, and teacher’s name. The contest runs from Sept. 11 – 20. All entries must be received by Monday, Sep. 23 at the SDFHC office located at 25115 West Avenue Stanford, Ste. 104. The entry form will be available on the SDFHC website at www.sdfhc.org and duckrace.com/scv.

In addition, classroom teachers of participating students will be entered into a random drawing where one teacher will be selected to receive a $200 classroom grant.

The annual Rubber Ducky Festival, also known as the Rubber Ducky Regatta, is SDFHC’s signature fundraising event providing patient care funding throughout the year. Rubber ducks for this year’s event are available for purchase online. The grand prize will be a $2,500 cash gift card, second prize will be a $1,500 cash gift card and third prize will be a $500 cash gift card. All prize amounts represent cash value and winner does not need to be present to win. Ducks can be adopted between now and race day.

Rubber ducks are available for adoption at $5 per duck, making the event affordable for everyone. Other adoption opportunities include: Quack Family (5 ducks plus 1 free duck for $25); Quacker’s Dozen (10 ducks plus 2 free ducks for $50) and Duck Flock (20 ducks plus 4 free ducks for $100). Visit  www.duckrace.com/scv for more information on duck adoptions.

In addition to games and vendor booths, the event will feature free admission, free parking, food trucks – In-N-Out Burger, Downtown Dogs and Tango Mango Italian Ice – vendors, activities and entertainment. The fun-filled family festival features rubber ducky regatta races beginning at 12:00 p.m. Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael Antonovich serves as this year’s Honorary Chairman. City of Santa Clarita Mayor Bob Kellar serves as Masters of Ceremonies.

All proceeds from this event go toward patient care at SDFHC, which offers affordable, quality primary health care for residents of the Santa Clarita Valley. SDFHC makes a special effort to serve the uninsured and underinsured. Last year’s event raised more than $90,000.

SDFHC thanks sponsors of this year’s event: Desert Drugs, Newhall Pharmacy, Boston Scientific, Kaiser Permanente, SCV Rotary, Providence Holy Cross Medical Center, Henry Mayo Newhall Memorial Hospital, Point of View Communications, SOS Entertainment, C.A. Rasmussen Inc, Hands On Santa Clarita, Burrtec, Andel Engineering and Glendale Kiwanis.  As well as this year’s media partners for this year’s event including: The Signal; The Magazine of Santa Clarita and elite Magazine; SCVTV; KHTS AM 1220; Smart Shopper; Inside SCV Magazine, Our Valleys Magazine, Edwards Outdoor Advertising, Santa Clarita Living, Canyon Country Magazine, Santa Clarita Gazette and Free Classifieds.

SDFHC operates three health centers in the Santa Clarita Valley—Canyon Country Health Center, Val Verde Health Center and Newhall Health Center—as well as outreach sites at College of the Canyons and California Institute of the Arts. SDFHC offers a full range of health care services—physicals, immunizations and vaccines, screenings and diagnostic tests, well baby care, and family planning—to those who may not seek health care elsewhere. Patients pay based on their income. This past year, SDFHC provided service for 11,000 patient visits.

ABOUT SAMUEL DIXON FAMILY HEALTH CENTERS INC.

SDFHC was established in 1980 and named for long-time Val Verde resident and minister, the late Reverend Samuel Dixon.  As the only non-profit health center founded and based in the Santa Clarita Valley, SDFHC serves the greater Santa Clarita Valley and is governed by a board of directors, all of whom are Santa Clarita residents. The mission of SDFHC is to enhance wellness by providing quality primary health care services and health education to unserved and underserved residents, with a special emphasis on serving the uninsured. Easily accessible services are available for the entire family in both English and Spanish. Medi-Cal, Blue Cross and Healthy Families are all accepted, and a sliding fee scale is offered, keeping health care affordable for all. SDFHC is supported by countless individuals as well as corporate sponsors who help make affordable health care possible. Tax-deductible contributions are welcome. Health services are available at the Val Verde Health Center (661-257-4008), the Canyon Country Health Center (661-424-1220) and the Newhall Health Center (661-291-1777).